Old aluminium door - how to replace double glazed unit?

[EssexGuy]

Good morning

I wonder if I can call on the collective wisdom of the forum, please?

My father in law passed recently but unfortunately, the police had to break in to get into his house. They smashed the upper glazed in an old 1980s aluminium front door.

We're looking to sell the house in time but I obviously need to replace the unit.

I've taken the door off it's hinges but can't work out how the top bar comes off. It looks like it slides off the side bars but do I have to undo the whole frame and then reassemble? Or is there a way to somehow get the top bar out by itself?

I'd be really grateful for any advice & guidance.

Thanks

 

[freddiemercurystwin]

I would have thought you need to remove the trims surrounding the glazed unit, then the unit can be changed and the trims clipped back into place, not take the door apart.

Though I could be way off with it being a ye oldie door.

 

[EssexGuy]

Hi...

Thanks for the swift reply.

Unfortunately, there's a slight 'lip' around the edges of the frame, so a unit wouldn't just slip back into place. If I get one that just slots in, it would rattle around in the frame, even with the trims out back in place

 

[ronniecabers]

It does look like it's beaded to me, your first picture seems to show them holding the wood in. My suspicion is that possibly a rubber wedge gasket has been misplaced when the door was boarded up.

You say there is a ' slight lip' around the frame and if slotted in it would rattle.. sealed units never fit tightly in the apertures as on their width and height, they have to be packed correctly ( toe and heeled ). Maybe some pictures with the wood removed? Are there any metal ' beads ' that can be removed?. Having said all that there are some you have to completely dissemble to replace the glass but they are usually commercial

 

[EssexGuy]

Hi ...

Thanks for your reply and the info.

Yes, there was a rubber beading and aluminium strips holding the unit in place ... the ones you can see in the first picture shows one side of the door with them in place. Some of the others show the reverse side of the door without the beading in place. I had to remove it to get the old smashed unit out.

The reason I thought the sealed unit slid into place from the top of the door is that it seemed a few mm's wider each side than the visible frame - and when I removed it, there was double sided tape along each edge which was attached to the frame, so it was a snug fit.